After a lopsided victory over KKR, Piyush Chawla praises Hardik Pandya, saying, “Decision-making was spot on.”

Mumbai Indians (MI) captainn Hardik Padya was praised by Piyush Chawla, who claimed that the five-time champions easily defeated Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) on Monday, March 31 at Mumbai’s legendary Wankhede Stadium thanks in large part to his aggressive captaincy.

Hardik assessed that the conditions were favourable for the pacers and made good use of them, according to Piyush Chawla, a former MI player. When Harshit Rana came out to bat, Hardik called on left-arm wrist-spinner Vignesh Puthur, which impressed the former Indian spinner as well. When Rana took the big shot against the inexperienced player and holed out to deep mid-wicket, the move paid off.

“I believe that his offensive style was the best aspect of his captaincy. He made effective use of the conditions after carefully reading them and realising that there was something in the pitch for the seamers. When Harshit Rana was batting near the finish, Vignesh [Puthur] stepped in to bowl, which was a particularly good play, he said on JioHotstar.

Before debutant Ashwani Kumar was brought on in the fourth over of the powerplay, Trent Boult and Deepak Chahar took wickets with the new ball. The left-arm bowler dismissed KKR skipper Ajinkya Rahane with his first delivery. Ultimately, Ashwani concluded with outstanding numbers of 4/24 in three overs. In his IPL debut, he became the first Indian player to score four runs.

“With Ramandeep Singh still there, you would rather take that wicket than allow the opposition to score another ten to fifteen runs. All in all, he made the right choice. He included Ashwani Kumar in the attack as Manish Pandey and Rinku Singh were forming a partnership, and that over altered the course of the match.

Today, the team carried out their plans flawlessly,” Piyush Chawla said.

It’s never easy to make such a strong debut, especially at Wankhede, which is regarded as a hitting heaven, the way he entered the game. Any bowler gains a great deal of confidence when they get a wicket with the first delivery. He then bowled with excellent control, skilfully changing his lengths,” he continued.

Piyush Chawla also praised Ashwani’s skill in setting up Andre Russell. After bowling a few short balls, the 23-year-old hit a length ball that caused Russell to screw up and saw his stumps being disturbed.

“He set it up nicely, and his dismissal of Andre Russell was especially stunning. When Russell entered, he bowled a couple of bouncers to get him expecting the short ball, and then he cleverly pitched one up to get him out. “It’s an amazing accomplishment for a rookie who hasn’t played much first-class cricket to come in at this level and deliver such a spell,” he continued.

In 16.2 overs, KKR was bowled out for a mere 116. With eight wickets remaining, the home team chased the meagre total in just 12.5 overs.